


It's All in the Eyes

by GizliBiraz



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Canon halfway through s2e14, Developing Relationship, F/F, F/M, I guess this is sort of AU now, Inevitable, M/M, Multi, Plans For The Future, Polyamorous Character, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, but things went differently after the hot tub
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-14
Updated: 2019-04-17
Packaged: 2019-06-10 09:42:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 17,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15288786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GizliBiraz/pseuds/GizliBiraz
Summary: Betty and Archie kissed in the car in Cheryl's driveway.  Once Jughead and Veronica found out, there were confrontations and revelations, and the four best friends began to evolve into something... more.Set up to and beginning with the Vughead kiss in Season 2, Episode 14...





	1. Leveling the Playing Field

**Author's Note:**

> This story began to speak to me as soon as I saw the hot tub scene (aka, the Vughead kiss) in Season 2, Episode 14. I've integrated the dialog and actions from that scene to start things off, but in my mind, the story goes a slightly different direction thereafter.... The first part doesn't deviate too much from what was seen in the episode, but I promise there's more to come. Rating for the planned fun later on...
> 
> Four hot folks, alone, in the mountains, at a steamy cabin, drinking, challenging one another's assumptions and relationships? Yeah, what could possibly happen? LOL
> 
> I think this will end up being mostly smut, but it's still a work in progress as I write this part (07.14.18). Will update as I can, but I don't have much time to write; however, the images I'm going to share are pounding through my head and desperately begging to get out...

Roni’s Cruella deVil style two-tone robe billowed behind her as she made her way to the hot tub’s stone stairs. The steam billowed around her feet as she dropped the robe and reached for Archie’s hand to join her friends in the embrace of the warm water. As she settled in beside her beau, he handed her the bright green cocktail, and she set her plan in motion.

“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m feelin’ better already,” she tossed out with a slight grin before taking an exaggerated sip. She could feel Archie’s eyes drinking her in, and she reveled in the attention. She let Betty and Jughead grab a sip, and she had to look away as Betty’s tongue darted out to like the frosty side of her glass. To gather herself, she charged full-speed into her planned speech. “So,” she took a deep breath, “full disclosure time. When Archie told me about the kiss,” another deep breath, and a glance over her shoulder to be sure he wasn’t getting angry. Jughead and Betty both looked slightly worried at where this might be headed, knowing full well they had not fully resolved the issue. “I absorbed it, processed it, and in the end, I bear no ill will toward my beau nor my bestie.” Betty looked at Jug, worried at his reaction to this unexpected pronouncement. “But,” Veronica continued, “has the thought of it haunted me these last few weeks?” She pursed her lips and nodded, and Archie looked down, still slightly guilty over the whole thing, even though he knew he shouldn’t be. Roni squeezed his hand and caught his eye, “A tiny bit, yeah. And now, clearly,” she turned to her friends, “Betty and Jughead, you guys are caught up in the aftermath. So, to clear the air amongst us,” she and Betty both raised their drinks for another sip, “Jughead and I,” she worried at the straw and lowered her voice and her lids, “should kiss.”

Veronica shut up and began to suck at the straw, allowing the momentarily awkward silence to build, and waiting to see how her closest friends would react. Archie broke the moment with a confused and slightly incredulous “What?” Jughead’s easy smile betrayed his complete amusement with the ludicrous idea, and Betty looked suitably shocked. “Veronica, are you nuts?”

Jug decided he could have a little fun with this, too, and he began to move toward the center of the hot tub, “Well, wait a minute, I don’t know. Hold on.” He stood up to face his friends, entirely absorbed with the absurdity of it all. “Veronica and I, kissing? It might help to, uh... What’s the, what’s the sports term, Archie?” He looked at his friend, who was growing more confused by the moment. “Um, level the playing field?” He laughed toward Veronica, who was also quite amused with herself.

Archie looked across to the girl next door, “Betty, a little help here?” His eyes darted back and forth between his two best friends.

Betty refused to play into their little game, “You’re not upset, though, Jug?” She was deathly serious, despite the fruity concoction she still cradled.

“No! No, really. I’m not upset,” Jughead assured her, sincerity dancing in his stormy blue eyes.

Betty wasn’t buying it. “Right,” she nodded.

“But I’m human.” He shrugged. “You know, what if a future me tries to use your kiss with Archie against some future you?” Betty’s eyes darted toward Veronica, who was focused intently on her drink. Archie was no help, as he looked suspiciously at his friend. “A ‘Vughead’ kiss, right now, in the present, might be precisely what it takes to save a future ‘Bughead’ from imploding.” He nodded, proud of the load of bullshit he’d just come up with on the fly, still not really all that interested in kissing Veronica, but clearly enjoying this uncomfortable moment she’d helped create.

But then, as Betty’s astounded gaze rested on her boyfriend, and she searched for words, something in the air changed slightly. Jughead turned his head, “Archie, come on, man. It’s just a stupid kiss. Right?”

Veronica decided the theatrics had gone on for long enough and stood up next to Jughead. Archie and Betty both remained seated and stunned at what was unfolding before their eyes. “Jughead,” Roni stated matter-of-factly as she placed one dainty hand on each side of his face, “don’t freak out.” Archie couldn’t decide whether he was furious, intrigued, excited, or slighted as he stared at the two standing before him. His eyes darted to Betty, who was already watching his reactions. The visual contact was too weighty for her, so she looked up at the non-couple about to embrace.

Veronica began to pull Jughead’s face down gently toward hers, “Just trust me.” Their lips crashed together, each of them expecting it to be a one-and-done, a rise to the challenge laid out before them in the silence. Neither were prepared for the ripple of electricity that surged between them.

They kept it tame, Jughead leaning into the kiss but not wrapping his arms around Veronica, neither parting lips to deepen the contact. Archie was unsure how to react, knowing that you’re supposed to be angry or hurt when your girl is kissing someone else, but somehow instead feeling a quickening in his gut and a tingle below that. He hid his confusion behind an exaggerated sigh and a look away, but quickly turned back to the show he never knew he wanted to see.

Betty was looking everywhere but at the two of them, foregoing the straw to take a healthy swig of her tasty beverage. However, she, too, found her eyes irresistibly drawn to the display before her, focusing on the kiss through heavily lidded eyes. She remembered when Veronica had said the same words to her before kissing her at the Vixens auditions, and how amazing that moment had felt. She knew all too well the mixture of emotions Veronica Lodge’s lips could cause.

Both the redhead and the blonde found themselves drawn to this moment, each of them struggling to keep their breathing regular and their pulses under control. No one dared move, and time began to play tricks on them, stretching this twelve seconds into hours.

As Veronica completed the kiss and pulled away with a purposeful smooching smack, she turned to Archie with a smug grin, and patted Jughead’s cheek twice, hoping the others in the water would buy the “just friends” vibe she was so intently trying to portray.

She sat down again next to Archie and focused the full wattage of her attention on him. She laid a hand on his thigh and leaned in for a kiss, this time abandoning herself to the sensations of the full lips pressed against her own. He was stoic at first, but it only took a moment for him to soften and return her embrace. She began to run her hand up and down his thighs, eventually softly raking across his groin, and finding him eager to continue this. She nibbled at his earlobe and whispered, “And here I thought you might be angry. Instead, I find you willing and ready to go?” He let his head fall back, and she climbed on top of his lap to get access to his other ear, “Did it turn you on, Archie? Did you like watching me kiss him?”

Archie knew it was useless to lie to her; she could always tell. “More than I should have,” he growled quietly into her neck as he pulled her body closer to his own. “I don’t get it, but whatever. It worked, okay?” He began to kiss her in a fevered rush.

Meanwhile, Jughead had taken his place beside Betty. She had one knee pulled up against her chest, and was staring into her drink, absently biting on the edge of the glass. She didn’t say anything as he slipped his arm around her, and she didn’t look at him for a moment. He gently placed his hand on her chin and turned her face toward him, moving slowly and deliberately to avoid a blowup.

Instead, she burst toward him and covered him in kisses, consumed by the burn in her chest and a little lightheaded from her lack of oxygen due to her halted breathing. As she climbed onto his lap and he happily gave into her barrage, she knew she needed to have him alone—now. “Let’s go,” she breathed into his ear. Jughead didn’t have to be told twice, and the two left the hot tub to find their room in the cabin. Betty threw a light “good night” over her shoulder as they went, and Archie and Veronica soon followed them into the house.


	2. Entrapment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dark!Betty comes out to play, and Jughead knows just what to say.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still working to integrate the episode as much as possible before I diverge too much. This chapter is short, just moving things along before we get to the good stuff.

By the time they reached the room, the hunger had calmed just a bit, so Betty decided to shower off the chlorine from the hot tub. Jughead went to rinse off in the shower of one of the empty rooms and was on the bed flipping through a book when Betty came out of the bathroom. She turned to him and cocked her head to the side. “You know what I just realized? Out of the four of us, only you and Archie haven’t kissed.” Her eyes lit up with amusement, but Jughead refused to take the bait.

“Fascinating,” he quipped in a bored monotone, and he turned back to his book. It only took a moment for him to realize what Betty was really saying. “Wait! What?” He put the book down and looked at his girl in slight disbelief. “You and Veronica?” Betty gave him a sly grin and closed the bathroom door. Jug chuckled to himself and tried to go back to his book, but his brain was firmly in fantasy land, imagining the two beauties in a lip lock. 

“Did it make you feel better? Kissing Veronica?” Betty called from behind the closed door.

Stirred from his reverie, Jughead took a deep breath and answered hesitantly, “Felt good watching Archie’s face.”

Betty would not give up so easily. “Okay, but did you enjoy kissing her?”

“I know entrapment when I hear it, Betty,” Jug grinned. 

At that moment, the door flung open, and Dark Betty emerged in her black wig, lacy black bra and silky black slip. “Because if you did, I might have to punish you.”

Jughead was immediately at full attention, and ready to join in this game. “How?”

Betty considered for a moment and began to saunter across to where he sat on the edge of the bed. “I packed this in case you needed a distraction from your sleuthing.”

“Consider me distracted,” he placed his hands on her waist, and she pushed him down onto the bed, climbing on top of him and pinning him down with sheer will.

“Well, did you?” Betty asked between kisses.

Much like Archie couldn’t get away with lying to Veronica, Jughead knew he could never pull it off. Besides, “punishment” might be fun. “Yes,” he breathed, “I enjoyed it.” Betty slapped his cheek—not hard, but it was unexpected. It only heightened Jughead’s arousal. “She tasted sweet and salty,” he edged the conversation forward, “but she doesn’t hold a candle to you.” He punctuated this last with a sudden twist, flipping Betty onto her back and pinning her down at the wrists. She struggled against him playfully. “You’re like fire in my veins, the last drop of water teasing a dying man in the desert.” He kissed her jawbone, her neck, that oh-so-sensitive spot just behind her ear. The scent of her desire filled the room with dark spices and stoked the banked fire of his own. “When you leave the room, all the oxygen goes out with you, and I could perish in the asphyxiation of your absence.” He kissed along her collarbone, down between her breasts, and bit at one nipple through the delicate lace of the bra. “You consume me, Betty Cooper.”


	3. Transfixiation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Betty and Jughead share a very intimate moment. Little do they know they have an unintended audience...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... and here is where things begin to change more drastically from what's in the episode.

Next door, Archie was trying to work out his feelings and his frustrations with some push-ups. It didn’t hurt that Roni sat on the bed staring at him with a hungry look in her eye. “Don’t get me wrong, I love a good floor show, but if this is a response to Jughead threatening your masculinity or whatever...”

“I’m just getting my daily workout in,” Archie answered as he got up from the floor and plopped down in the bed beside his girl. 

She turned to him and placed a hand on his chest. “Well, there are other ways to do that,” she teased.

He turned away from her slightly and said, “I’m actually kind of tired, Roni.”

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Where was the hot and heavy from 20 minutes ago? What was going on? “You’re kidding, right?”

As he tried to figure out how to tell her that he was so confused by his reaction to her kiss with Jughead that he needed some time to process, they began to hear squeaky springs and a headboard banging against the adjoining wall. They both stopped and looked up toward the wall. “Oh, my God,” Veronica whispered, “are they...” She sat up in amusement while Archie placed a pillow over his head. She chuckled and pushed the pillow out of the way. “Oh, no, Archiekins, we are not letting this go.” She grabbed his hand and started to pull him up.

“Wait, Veronica, what are you doing?” Archie had a bad feeling about this... or was that a good one? He was so discombobulated.

“We have to go over there!” Mischief was clearly the name of the game for Veronica on this trip.

“Are you crazy?! We can’t do that!” Archie lowered his voice, “they’re having sex!”

“Exactly! Good thing someone is,” Roni tapped playfully at Archie’s chest. “Wouldn’t it be fun to see their faces when we interrupt them? After all, the whole time I was kissing Jughead, all he was doing was looking at you to see how you would react.” Now, Archie knew that couldn’t be true, but a part of him—a part he didn’t want to acknowledge—really hoped that it might actually be so. Feeling his resolve give way and his curiosity overtake his propriety, Archie sighed and let Veronica pull him to his feet. She actually squealed as they padded out into the hallway and to the next door down.

When they got to the door, Veronica didn’t even pause. She reached for the knob knowing full well her friends wouldn’t have thought to lock it. She turned it, and it swung wide, but then she seemed to lose steam. The scene before them transfixed them both, catching them off guard and mesmerizing them.

Both Betty and Jughead were sitting up, Betty straddled across Jughead’s lap, her hands threaded into his hair, and her head thrown back in ecstasy, blonde locks dancing as she bounced. His strong arms were wrapped around her back, providing a counterbalance to her arch, pulling her tightly against his hips with each thrust. A thin sheen of well-earned sweat covered both their bodies, providing a radiance that almost matched their clear love for one another. “Yes, Jug, yes...” Betty was lost in the moment, both she and Jughead unaware of their audience.

Roni grasped more tightly onto Archie’s hand, and she could feel his pulse racing along with her own. The enraptured lovers were entirely lost to each other, and Veronica could watch this for hours. She’d never been shy about sex, but this was a whole new level. In her mind, she remembered the taste of Betty’s lips all that time ago, and she conflated it with the feel of Jughead earlier tonight. She wanted to join them, to just insert herself in the situation, but she didn’t know how they—or Archie—would take that.

Archie was on a similar path. He’d known that Betty’s body was fantastic, but he had no idea she knew how to move like that. And he found himself drawn more than he’d dare to admit to the sinewy power of Jughead’s arms and back as he lost himself in Betty. Archie was afraid to move, afraid to betray his building desire to explore all of these feelings, but the physiological response would not be stopped.

“Oh, my God, Jug!” Betty sped her motions, leaning back even more into the movement, her fingernails digging into the tops of his shoulders now.

“Betty, yes, Betty...” Jughead could barely get the words out, and as their speed increased, he gritted his teeth, breathing in time with the pumping, “I’m gonna cum, baby.”

“Yeah, please, yes, come on! Oh, oh, my God!” Betty, too, was close to that edge.

Harder and deeper, they danced together along that ledge of ultimate pleasure until, in one swift moment, both of them shattered together, heedless of their volume and becoming, in that second, one being, one entity eternally joined. As they remained connected, the motion stopped, Betty leaning her forehead down onto Jughead’s, he wrapping his arms tightly around her tiny waist. They panted together, trying to catch their breath, neither wanting to break their contact.

Veronica had absently placed her free hand on her chest and was hungrily grasping for air in the rarefied atmosphere of the room. Archie, too, was captivated at what he’d witnessed, spellbound and paralyzed in the best of ways.

Slowly, Betty began to recognize the shift in the air. She opened her eyes and gently lifted her head. She kissed Jughead, then lifted her face toward the open door where her two besties stood stock still. She should have been mad. She should have been furious at the intrusion. Maybe it was the afterglow or maybe it was the jalapeño margaritas, but she just didn’t have it in her to be angry. She felt Jughead turn his head that direction also, and she heard him catch his breath. As he opened his mouth to say something, Betty dug her fingertips into his shoulders, silently urging him to hold his tongue. Aside from their still slightly labored breathing, no one moved for what seemed an eternity.


	4. Up For It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Bughead reaction to the intrusion may not be what you expect...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, now, this is getting interesting! (At least I hope so...)
> 
> This is as far as I've gotten for now, but I promise I'm still writing and will post more as soon as possible.

Betty noticed Archie’s stance first. He seemed to have stopped in mid-stride, his right foot resting on the ball, calf tensed. As he stood frozen, staring at them, his black boxers betrayed his slight tremble and did nothing to hide the erection begging to break free. Those chiseled abs and shock of fiery hair completed the picture, with the promise of unbridled power in his touch. Veronica’s black robe had fallen open slightly, revealing a vast expanse of her china-doll skin, interrupted only by black lace barely-there panties. She’d brought one hand up to her chest and her full breasts rose and fell slightly with her halted breathing. Betty’s interest was piqued, and she wanted to see more, to feel more, to taste more—of both of them.

Jughead was similarly noting the intruders and found himself focusing a little too much on what little skin he couldn’t see in the other couple. Just as he began to silently chastise himself, Betty did something incredible. She lifted her arm toward their friends, palm up, fingers loosely curled. She was reaching for them, asking them to join in. It only took seconds for Jughead to process what was happening before he, too, reached a hand toward them, beckoning them to come closer, to transition from spectators to participants.

Veronica didn’t need any more of an invitation than that. She let go of Archie’s hand and moved toward the bed, dropping her robe and shedding her scant underwear along the way. Archie watched, captivated, as she climbed onto the bed behind Jughead, pressing her breasts into his back, and reaching around him to embrace both him and Betty. She laid a light kiss on Juggie’s shoulder and joined the other two in their inviting gesture, urging Archie to them. “Come on, Archie. You can’t tell me some part of you doesn’t want this,” she teased.

“But, Roni...” Archie was clearly waging a war within himself. He knew he was in love with Veronica, but the kiss with Betty had been more intense and meaningful to him than he’d want to admit. And as he stood now, staring at these three beautiful people begging him to join in, he realized that he wanted this, too. Now thawed from the heat in the room, Archie began to move slowly toward the bed. He found himself staring at the satisfied smirk spreading across Jughead’s lips. “Fine, fuck it,” he said, as he shed his boxers and climbed onto the bed behind Veronica. He grasped each of her shoulders with one hand, squeezing tight, before leaning into her neck and kissing her. He felt another hand on his own shoulder and realized Betty was reaching out to him, making sure that some skin-to-skin contact grounded this moment and made it real.

“Hey, Veronica,” the blonde intoned, “I think we’re missing something here.”

Roni picked up on the teasing, mischievous tone immediately, “Yeah? What’s that, B?”

“I think these two boys owe us a kiss.” Jughead reached toward Betty’s hair, happy to pull her face down to oblige, but she pulled away. “With each other.”

“Yeah?” the light danced in Veronica’s eyes. “Sounds good to me.” She laughed and looked at a stunned Archie over her shoulder. Jughead rolled his eyes, but grinned up at the redhead. “She’s right, you know,” Veronica explained, “You two have never kissed. The rest of us have.”

“Wait a minute, wait a minute!” Jughead interjected. “You keep talking about this alleged kiss you two had, but how do we know it really happened? No one saw it.”

“Cheryl did,” Betty replied innocently. “You want us to call and invite her over?”

All three of her bedmates let out a firm “No!” in unison, and she giggled sweetly.

“We could just reenact it,” Veronica offered. The amusement in her eyes turned slightly more needful as she gazed at her best friend.

“Sure,” Betty answered and leaned in. Jughead tilted his head out of the way to allow access, and the two girls locked lips over his shoulder. Both he and Archie watched in awe as their simple challenge deepened into something more, something with greed and passion laced into it. After a few moments, they broke contact and stared into one another’s eyes, communicating everything and nothing through sheer will.

Betty leaned back, the heat of her core teasing again at Juggie’s head as she settled back onto his lap. The kiss, her heat, Roni’s breasts pressed against his back, and now Archie’s hand on his arm all contributed to the sense of bliss he was feeling. “Boys?” Betty prompted.

Jughead just grinned, craning his neck to look over Veronica and up to Archie behind her. “I guess we have to give the ladies what they want, Arch.” He wiggled his eyebrow dramatically, “If you’re up for it, that is.”


	5. All of Us Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Barriers are broken and connections are made as these four share their most intimate moment ... together!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I **PROMISE** there's more to come... Life just tries to get in the way at every turn. Hang tight, folks! Meanwhile, please comment and let me know how this seems so far... these four are NOT done yet!

Tired of fighting with himself, Archie answered by grabbing a handful of Jug’s dark curls, pulling his head back just a bit farther and leaning in. Veronica moved slightly out of the way, relishing the burn in Archie’s eyes as his lips finally made contact with Jughead’s. Neither of them was prepared for the surge that attacked them both. Jug twisted more toward the redhead, and Veronica moved completely out of the way. Betty climbed off of Jug’s lap and allowed the man to turn more toward his friend.

Archie’s fingers knotted more firmly in Jughead’s hair, and Jughead turned into the embrace, rising to his knees and never breaking the contact. They were facing each other now, chest to chest, both on their knees, Jughead’s hands snaking up Archie’s strong back. Once he gave into the sensations, Archie gave in completely. He teased his tongue along Jughead’s full lower lip, and Jug opened up to allow access.

The girls watched this scene unfold in wonder. Both of them already lusting, greedy for flesh, and at this point, it didn’t matter whose. Each girl pressed up against the back of her beau, kissing, rubbing, holding, all while the boys continued to explore this new facet of their friendship with open mouths, open arms, open hearts. Veronica, as usual, was ready to get things moving along, so she reached between the two boys, wrapping her dainty hand firmly around Archie’s sac and giving a good squeeze, just barely letting her finely manicured nails scrape the tender skin. She loved hearing the catch in his breathing but loved even more that he didn’t let it pull him away from his kiss. Betty followed Veronica’s lead, reaching around to grasp Jughead’s erection, which was still sticky from her own juices. He bucked into her grip almost involuntarily, his hips pressing briefly into Archie’s, loosing an unexpected moan from the ginger.

Jughead took this opportunity to come up for air. His smile was genuine and infectious, “We really gonna do this?” He made eye contact with each of his friends. “All of us? Together?”

Betty leaned up into his ear for a throaty and intoxicating, “Oh, yes! Yes, we are.”

Veronica laughed and offered a simple, “Uh-huh.”

“Arch?” Jughead stared into his best friend’s light brown eyes. He was terrified Archie would suddenly come to his senses, snap out of it, stop this whole thing in its tracks before it really even got started.

Instead, Archie grinned that little crooked smile of his. “Yeah. Yeah, I think we are, Jughead,” he said simply and laid one hand on Jughead’s chest. With the slightest pressure there, Jughead knew Archie was trying to take control, and he let the redhead push him down onto the bed.

As they each settled on their backs, the girls, as if by choreographed plan, climbed on top of them. “Shall we?” Veronica looked at Betty as she positioned herself just so over Archie’s hips.

“We shall,” Betty answered, mirroring the motion.

Both of the boys instinctively reached for their girls’ hips and helped guide them to where they wanted them to be. Betty adored the expansion and feeling every inch of Jughead filling her up, her nerve endings singing praises to every contour as she took in his length. Veronica, likewise, settled onto Archie like coming home, the sensations of his slight involuntary movements inside of her a welcome and pleasant feeling. Once settled, Veronica leaned slightly toward Betty, “Kiss me.”

Betty obliged, and as they locked lips, both girls began to move ever-so-slightly against their boys. The kiss was brief, as each of the beauties began to find a rhythm to her movements, Betty bouncing, and Veronica grinding. As if on cue, each of the boys reached a hand up to tease at the nipples of his rider, and they all laughed together.

After a moment, the more inexperienced Betty noticed that Veronica’s motion was less frenetic, more controlled, and that Archie seemed to enjoy it quite a lot. She realized she was staring when she was writing the scene in her head: the gorgeous raven-haired beauty with the heavy breasts throwing her head back, one hand on Archie’s abs, the other balancing her on his thigh. Archie’s eyes were open, blatant love and appreciation on his face as he lost himself to Veronica’s touch. “V,” Betty had stilled, and her voice was tiny, barely audible amidst the creaky bed and labored breathing all around her. Veronica opened her eyes and looked at her bestie, never once losing the pace of her movement. “Show me how to do that.”

Veronica grinned. “Put your hands like mine, one behind, one in front.” Betty did so. “Now, dance.”

Betty seemed confused, and Jughead, clearly intrigued, was anxious to keep things moving. “Think of some sexy music, something slow and rhythmic, and just move your hips.” Betty began to hum a tune in her head, and her hips joined in on the action pretty easily. “Feel it?” Veronica asked. “It’s soooo good, so deep and,” she caught her breath as Archie bucked against her, “mmmm....” Her train of thought was gone.

Jughead liked the way this felt almost as much as the bouncing he was used to from her, but like this, he wanted to move along more, to pull her tighter onto his hips, to reach more deeply inside her. He began to counter her motion with his own, grinding up and into her.

Archie reached down a hand to where he and Veronica were joined, angling his thumb between them to rest on her clit, letting the friction of her motion be the movement she needed there. She was getting close to her release, breathing heavily and slipping from her steady rhythm. “Oh, my God, Archie, yes!” Veronica could no longer contain herself, finally letting that well-practiced control slip and pleasure take its place.

Betty continued to grind against Jughead, and the feelings were delicious. Having already been through this once, and enthralled at the show beside them, both she and Jughead settled into an easy pace, continuing to feel amazing, but not actively working toward any conclusion. Instead, they became the audience for their friends, watching as Veronica’s careful control ebbed away, and as Archie became more insistent, more demanding, losing that nice-guy veneer in favor of unbridled lust.

Betty leaned down to whisper in Jughead’s ear. “What a show,” she said. He nodded his assent before nibbling at her earlobe. “Should we, you know, help them?” She pulled back a little to look in his eyes, a dangerous light dancing behind her own.

“Yeah, I think we should.”

Betty climbed off of Jughead and rose up behind the panting Veronica. She wrapped her arms around Veronica, snaking one hand up to cup a breast, her fingertips kneading and twisting at the nipple, and bringing the other hand down toward Archie’s, wanting to touch more, to have an effect on V, but also hesitant to push too far too quickly. She let her hand rest there on Veronica’s lower stomach and began to nuzzle against her neck, salty and slick with her sweat. Veronica leaned back against Betty, using the extra support to provide more leverage as she pushed into Archie’s hips.

Jughead rolled up against Archie’s side and placed a hand on his cheek to turn the redhead’s face toward him. Archie was nearly lost to Veronica’s motions, but once his eyes connected to Jughead’s piercing blue ones, that electric charge kicked in again, and the men were kissing fiercely until Archie had to pull away to grit his teeth as he came, hard and long, his release setting off Veronica’s own. She gasped and moaned with abandon, lost in the sensations surrounding her. Her tight squeeze milked Archie completely, but she wasn’t quite done yet, writhing in sheer delight and loving the feel of Betty against her back. She leaned up to her best friend’s hungry mouth and caught a kiss of her own.


	6. Midnight Snacks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the situation progresses, inhibitions fly out the window, and the four friends become oh, so much more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry for the long delay in posting. I've been dealing with some rather serious health issues in my family, and have just been incredibly busy. I hate that I left you hanging, and I hope that this chapter will be spicy enough that you'll forgive me!

Veronica climbed off of Archie and took a spot lying on the other side of him, even though there wasn’t much room there. “Why don’t you clean Archiekins up for me, B?”

Betty didn’t catch her drift at first, but then saw V’s gaze trail down to the glistening wetness on Archie’s member. “Oh!” Betty finally caught on, “Sure!” Suddenly unsure, she looked at Jughead. “I mean, uh...”

“It’s okay, Betty. Show him what ya got.” Jughead seemed perfectly at home lying next to his best friend, tracing circles on his nipples and absently nibbling at his neck and earlobe.

“You’re sure?” Betty asked him.

“Please, Betty,” Archie’s voice sounded a little wrecked. “I want to feel you. Please.” Jughead reached his hand toward her, urging her head toward his best friend’s eager little soldier. Letting go of what little inhibitions remained, Betty positioned herself between Archie’s legs, and tentatively traced her tongue up the back side of his cock, before surrounding his head with her mouth and pushing back down again to envelop it. He groaned, nonsense syllables escaping as he felt the warmth enclose him.

“Veronica,” Jughead looked at her over Archie’s chest, “it seems to me you’re getting cheated, here.” His eyes sparkled with deviousness, and that slight dimple wrinkled his cheek with his grin. “Don’t you get to cum again, too?”

Her chuckle was deep and throaty, the tinkling of ice cubes at the bottom of a glass of bourbon. “I’ll get mine, Jughead, don’t you worry.”

“I’m just saying, I’m here to help, you know.” He looked down at Betty as she pulled and sucked, then back up at Archie’s face, rapt with passion. “Just tell me what you want.”

Veronica turned Archie’s face toward her own, planted a quick kiss on his lips, and agreed, “Yeah, I think it might be just about my time.” She got up from the sliver of mattress and slowly meandered around the bed, admiring the view of Betty’s labors from all angles. “Stand up,” she commanded Jughead as she paused by the foot of the bed to lean over and playfully take a little bite out of Betty’s beautiful ass. As Jughead got to his feet, Veronica took his spot on the other side of the bed, making a show of lying down gracefully on her back, spreading her legs and reaching down between them as if she were going to play with herself, but instead turning her hand over at the last minute and crooking a finger to call Jughead over. “Don’t you want a taste of this, Juggie?” she teased.

He mirrored Betty’s position, lying on his belly to give his face full attention to the dripping promise of Veronica’s lower lips. He ran his tongue slowly up her slit, pushing in at the last moment to tease the bud at the top. V reveled in the sudden warmth after being exposed to the cool of the room, and gasped as the tip of his tongue made contact with her clit. “Oh, God, yes!” she moaned as she gave herself over to the sensations. Encouraged, Jughead brought one hand up to spread her open and allow him full access to suck on the little nib of super sensitive skin. With his other hand, he slipped one, then two fingers inside of her, rubbing at the upper edges of his reach with each inward stroke.

It didn’t take long to get her to the edge of another climax. Her breathing quickened and she began to squirm under Jughead’s barrage. He was merciless, though, matching his movements to her own and pushing her right up to it and through it.

As her moans of satisfaction filtered through Archie’s befuddled brain, he found that despite his recent release, Betty’s efforts to “clean him up” were, in fact, bringing him back up to attention. There was too much to see, too much stimulation, too much sensation, but he loved it. He looked between his own legs to watch Betty’s blonde hair, usually so tightly managed, bouncing around in a disheveled tumble as her head went up and down. He saw Veronica’s head thrown back in ecstasy with Jughead’s dark curls a tantalizing sight below her waistline. He even noticed the way the dim lights played over the curve of Jughead’s ass with each movement he made. All of it was enough to drive him back to the breaking point much more quickly than his normal recovery time would have allowed.

Just as Archie neared his second release, Jughead looked up and locked eyes with him. Jug reached up for Archie’s hand, gripping it tightly just as the redhead came. “Jesus! Fuck!” Archie gritted and squeezed Juhead’s hand so tightly that Juggie wondered if it might be broken.

The spike of pain mixed well with the pleasure, and Jughead released Archie’s hand and crawled up Veronica’s body, trailing light kisses along the way. “I think,” he said, punctuated with another couple of kisses, “I think I might be done.” He grinned that lop-sided grin, and the giggling began. “Wait! Don’t get me wrong, this is amazing, and well, there better be some more of it, but Jesus, I gotta sleep sometime.” With that, the giggling turned to laughter, and what might have otherwise been an awkward end became a collapsed cuddle.

The four of them soon drifted off, Archie big spoon to Veronica, who was curled around Betty, with Jughead on the other end the only one facing the opposite direction. Arms and legs and hearts were tangled inextricably as they settled in for the night, each blissful, spent, lost in thought, and happy.


	7. The Answer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morning after time! Will it be awkward? Easy? Somewhere in between? Or will it just be ignored, as if it never happened? Our favorite foursome has to face each other in the full light of day. What will happen?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still have more in my head, but please let me know if you think this is going okay. Are they behaving as you'd expect? Please read and review, and remember that I'm open to any constructive feedback you may have. Thanks for sticking with me!

All four of the friends slept peacefully, wrapped in each other, in peace, and in contentment. Betty was the first to wake, slowly coming to herself before the sun peeked over the neighboring mountaintop. She felt warm, supple skin tight against her back, too slight and soft to be Jughead. A large hand, also not Juggie, rested heavy on her hip, its heat seeping into her flesh. She took a deep breath and slowly opened her eyes, finally seeing Jug’s dark eyelashes flutter against his cheeks as he dreamed in front of her. As she became fully aware of the implications of the mish-mosh of hands and arms and legs and feet, a momentary panic settled over her, washing her skin in a brief cold sweat. Oh, my God. Did I just have an orgy? What the hell?

Nearly as quickly as it had come, however, the feeling ebbed away, replaced with the simple rightness of this feeling. These were her friends, her loves, and now, her lovers. They were the ones she knew she could count on regardless of the circumstances. She took a deep breath and marveled at how well the scents of the room meshed: her peach and honeysuckle shampoo, Roni’s Chanel, Archie’s Ivory soap and all-American boy sweat, and Jughead’s Drakar Noir. Oh, and sex. Don’t forget the smell of sex that filled the air still, even hours after they were all done. It was a heady mixture, and one she was immediately used to and yearning for, all at the same time. It was home. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to drift back off.

Just as sleep almost took her again, she heard the softest whisper from behind her, “Betty?”

“Yeah, Arch?”

“We’re okay, right?” The redhead took a deep breath, “I mean, this is all okay, yeah?”

She smiled and whispered back, “Yeah, Archie. This is good. I think it’s a good thing. Now, get some rest; something tells me you’re gonna need it.”

Archie chuckled despite himself. “Yeah,” he agreed, and the room was quiet again for a few moments. “Hey, Betty?”

“Yeah?”

“You know I love you, right?”

“Yeah, I do, Arch. I love you, too.” Betty smiled as everyone stirred just enough to tighten their grips on one another. Jughead nuzzled right into the well between her breasts, and she pulled him tight, running her hand lazily up and down his wiry back. Soon, a cacophony of sated snores penetrated the still mountain air, their sounds singing a symphony every bit as lovely as the melody of their movements the night before.

*****

Jughead woke next, several hours later, his grumbling tummy the impetus for his sudden consciousness. He gently extricated himself from Betty’s arms, careful not to wake the sleeping blonde beauty. As he got to his feet, he looked over the faces of his friends. Betty looked so at peace in her sleep, one of the only times he ever saw her without the tiny crease between her brows. Veronica, always so put together and proper, seemed incredibly vulnerable, as though she needed the shields of Betty in front and Archie behind to properly bolster her against the slings and arrows of cruel fate. Archie, much like he was during the boyhood sleepovers when they were small, had his mouth wide open and half his face buried in the pillow, looking for all the world like he’d been sucker punched and landed all askew.

Jughead grinned, and silently walked down to the kitchen to forage for some much-needed sustenance. He had always been comfortable in his own skin, so clothing didn’t occur to him until, after examining the selection of options, he decided on making pancakes for the group. He found an apron abandoned on a hook in the pantry, and covered up before getting to work. By the time the first four pancakes were forming bubbles that popped and remained open holes, he heard the stairs behind him creak, and turned around with the spatula in his hand. “Hey, Roni!” he smiled, “Let me flip these.”

As he turned back to the griddle, Veronica couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped at seeing his bare ass cheeks hanging out of the apron. She went to the cabinet by the sink and grabbed two glasses, then to the fridge for the orange juice. “I didn’t know you were such a domestic goddess, Juggie.” She poured a glass for each of them, leaving the jug on the island and taking a seat on the stool behind it.

  
“Oh, I don’t know. When you like food as much as I do, you learn a trick or two.” He stepped aside and pointed to the griddle with the spatula, “See? Perfect!” As the side twos earned their GBDs, he got four plates from the cupboard and placed them in a stack next to the griddle. Roni grabbed two more glasses and re-settled on the stool, the black silk robe slipping a bit with each movement, leaving one long sliver of her marble skin exposed.

Betty was next to arrive downstairs, and she immediately fell in as if a job had been assigned to her. She gathered butter and syrup from the fridge, powdered sugar from the pantry (since Jughead apparently had something against regular syrup— _weirdo_ ), and forks and knives from the drawer by the sink. She set each out on the island in perfect place settings, sans plate. As she passed Roni, she leaned in for a quick peck on the cheek, and as she passed Jughead, she smacked his ass, earning a yelp from him and a giggle from Roni. She poured herself a glass of OJ and sat next to the raven-haired vixen while Jughead brought over the next batch of fluffy goodness. She gave a little yelp as the cold stool connected with her bare skin, and seriously rethought her choice of coming down in only her t-shirt and cheeky panties.

It was amazing how they each settled into this rhythm and pattern as if they’d done this a thousand times, and Veronica marveled at the ease and comfort of it all. “Hey, where’s Archie?”

“Oh, he was still sawing logs when I came down,” Betty answered.

“Of course he was,” Veronica smiled. “That boy could sleep through World War III!”

“I know how to get him up,” Jughead’s eyes sparkled with naughtiness.

“Yeah? After last night, I think we all do,” Veronica laughed. It was the first mention that anything had been anything other than plain-Jane normal the evening before, and she paused in fear of the moment becoming awkward.

“I’ll say!” Betty agreed, snickering into her juice glass. The temporary slight tension was broken, and Jug put out a third plate of four fluffy yummies, immediately setting to work on another set for their absent friend. “Should I go up and get him?”

“Nah, let him sleep for now,” Veronica replied, slathering her pancakes in syrup and butter.

“Let who sleep?” the voice floated down the stairs behind them, followed closely by Archie, stifling a yawn and rubbing the back of his neck, his perfect abs flexing above the waistband of his black boxers.

“Good morning, Sleeping Beauty,” Betty grinned. “Come have some breakfast.” She patted the empty stool beside her, and Jughead placed a final plate of pancakes on the island. Archie sat without preamble and began to doctor the pancakes to his liking—tons of butter and syrup, plus a little powdered sugar. “Woah! Seems you want it all!” Betty giggled.

“Well,” Archie looked around at them, “Yeah.” He met each of their eyes slowly, in turn. “I think I do kind of want it all. I mean, is that so bad?”

“I don’t think we’re talking about pancakes anymore, are we?” Jughead asked.

“No, I don’t think we are,” Veronica’s tone was much heftier than the light-hearted ribbing of a moment ago.

“Look, guys, I really think we need to do this,” Archie’s eyes were bright with possibility and purpose. “I mean, I think this is it. This is the answer.”

“The answer to what, Arch?” Betty prompted when he ran out of steam.

Archie took a deep breath, suddenly unsure of what he’d been certain of only moments ago. What if he were wrong? What if they didn’t feel the same, and last night was just a fluke? But it was too late. The cat was out of the bag, and he had to try. “Look, Betty, you’ve—well, this is going to sound way more conceited than I mean it to be, but—you’ve wanted me for along time, right?” Betty blushed and looked around sheepishly, but she nodded. “Well, then you fell in love with Jughead. And that’s awesome! But, did it really take away whatever ... attraction you had for me? I mean, you’re still there, right? Still kind of, well, want me?”

“Yeah, sure, I guess so, Archie, but,” Betty was suddenly uncomfortable with everyone’s eyes on her, “what are you getting at?”

“Just go with me, here, Betts.” Archie was on a roll now, picking up steam as his pancakes grew colder. “And me, well, I always found you, well, hot, but I was worried about losing our friendship and—God, just so much other bullshit, and I didn’t realize I should try until it was too late, and you were with Jughead.” He tilted his head toward his friend. “But at the same time, I found Veronica. And,” he turned toward Roni now, “Roni, you’re... you’re just incredible, and I love you with my whole heart, and I hope you know that. You have been incredible and just stunning and exactly what I needed in my life, and I can’t imagine my life without you now. Not that I’d want to.” It was Veronica’s turn to blush, and she reached across the bar to place a hand on Archie’s where a forkful of pancake still hung, suspended and forgotten. “And Jughead, well, I guess I just never really wanted to admit it, but man, you’re,” Archie looked down, then back up and intently at his best friend’s confounded face, “well, you’re so much more than a best friend to me.”

Never one to shy from the truth, Jughead grinned back at Archie, “Yeah, Archie, to me, too. I mean, you’re kind of amazing yourself.”

Archie smiled, again, taking a moment to look around at each of them, “So, then, this is the answer.”

“How do you mean, Archie?” Veronica asked.

“When you love someone, truly love them, why does that have to be it? I mean, who says you can only love one person at a time? Why is that the rule? Why can’t I just love all of you?”


	8. Negotiation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, Archie, why not?
> 
> In which the group discusses -- or at least, they begin to discuss -- where all of this might be headed.

“I don’t know, Archie,” Betty chimed in. “It’s just not how things are done.”

“And when have we ever worried about how things are done?” Archie looked around at each of them again, taking encouragement from the open and trusting smile on Veronica’s face. “Loving a second, or even a third person? It doesn’t have to be ‘instead of!’ Why can’t it be ‘in addition to’? I don’t love you any less, Veronica, after realizing that I love Betty and Jughead, too.” He paused, focusing all of his attention on her for a moment. “I hope you really do get that.”

“Of course I do, Archiekins!” Veronica seemed happy as a lark. “It makes perfect sense for us! Why shouldn’t we be poly?”

“Be what?” Betty and Jughead spoke together, as if they were scripted.

“Poly,” Veronica stated it as if everyone should know the word, its meaning, and all possible connotations. Seeing confusion still, she went on, “Polyamory? Ethical non-monogamy? Tell me you guys have heard of this!” Three heads shook slowly, so she went on. “Okay, so it’s basically just what we’re talking about. I knew some kids back in New York who were a throuple—a three-person couple. They were all in relationships with each other.”

“So, like, swinging?” Betty asked.

“Well, no, not really. It’s basically where each person in the relationship can be in relationships with other people, too. At the same time. But always with the full consent and knowledge of the other people involved. And usually, all the relationships are committed. So, like, Archie, you know I love you. You know I’d do anything for you, I’d give you the world, and I think you hang the moon. But, if I’m being completely honest here, I love Betty and Jughead, too. I mean, I’d die for any of the three of you. Without a second thought or a second glance. And every single one of you is just purely gorgeous. Archie, with those rippling abs and that shock of red hair. Betty, with your gorgeous eyes and bright smile—and that perfect little body. Juggie, you know everyone who meets you just wants to get their hands in that hair and have you look at them with that deep knowing stare, right? You guys make me a better person, and it’s all of you. Why should I pick just one? As long as all of us are okay with it?”

“That’s what makes it ‘ethical’ non-monogamy, then?” Jughead clarified, “That we all know, we all go in with our eyes open, we all consent?”

“Yes, exactly,” Veronica replied, “and for my part, I think I’m in, if you all are.” Archie was eagerly nodding his head. Jughead looked to Betty askance. She seemed to be processing, the little crease between her brows just as endearing as ever.

“Well,” he began, “I think this is bound to be a grand adventure, if nothing else. But first, I’ve got some questions.” Veronica and Archie, having laid all their cards on the table, seemed a bit worried that perhaps they’d said the wrong things. “But I’m not saying no, here. I just… I need to know how it all works. Betty, I have a feeling you’re thinking the same thing?”

“Yeah, a little,” she replied. “I’m processing. Go ahead with your questions, Jug. I bet they’re similar to mine.” She smiled at him, a small, automatic grin that said she was still part of the conversation, even if she wasn’t contributing much at the moment.

“Okay, well, first, I guess, is, will it always be all of us? I mean, what if I still want some one-on-one time with Betty?” He paused for a moment, “Or, for that matter, with either of you guys, Veronica? Archie?” Now that he’d begun, the questions were a torrent, tumbling from his lips as they tumbled through his brain, and he wasn’t pausing for any answers or discussion. That would come later. “What if, like, something happens? If it doesn’t work? And I mean, I get that we’d sort of all be ‘with’ each other, but what about our parents or our friends? Who do we tell? And when? Other than that, it’s mostly just logistics, I think.” He paused, deep in thought, wondering so many things, some of them indelicate. “At least for now.”

“Well,” Veronica, ever the worldly and wise, picked up the conversation, “the first thing is that yes, it would be just us, and we would remain committed to each other. That shouldn’t be hard since we already are. It’s just ramping it up a notch and allowing us to be honest about our attractions and our more … physical desires. And I would think we don’t make a point to really tell anyone, except maybe Archie? You and your dad are pretty close and honest with each other, yeah?” She looked at the redhead who nodded as he began to think about the prospect of filling Fred in. “As far as friends, I don’t think it matters outside of us. I mean, it’s none of their business, but at the same time, I don’t necessarily think we should hide.”

“Okay, sure, and alone time?” Jughead reached for Betty’s hand.

To everyone’s surprise, it was Betty who volunteered, “Well, yeah, but I don’t think we need to like, have a schedule or anything.” It was her first time speaking up in a while, and she seemed to be on board, but planning, her wheels turning as they always did. “Can’t we just play it by ear? I mean, I am definitely still going to want some alone time with Juggie, but … I think I might like some one-on-ones with both of you guys, too.” She looked between Veronica and Archie, then back at Jughead. “I don’t know, I mean, isn’t this a little … awkward? Are we negotiating?”

“Well, bottom line here, of course,” Veronica loved a great negotiation, but seemed to recognize that now might not be the time, “is that if we do this, if we make this more than one crazy night—which I really kind of hope now that we do—if we do this, then it will be a process. It will take some trial and error, some faith, and lots of communication. We have to be straight with each other, first and foremost.”

It started with Archie, who grinned and tried to stifle his snicker. This set off Betty, who couldn’t help a giggle and covered her mouth in a fruitless attempt to stop the sound escaping. Jughead took a second to catch on, but then began laughing in earnest. Veronica looked at the three of them, utterly confused. “What?” She had never looked quite so innocent in all her life.

“V, this is gonna go back to boring real quick if we have to be straight.” Betty laughed.

“Yeah, sorry, Jug,” Archie reached across and patted his friend’s hands, “but I guess you’ll just have to keep fantasizing about me instead of trying the real thing out.”

Finally realizing the joke, Veronica just rolled her eyes and joined in the mirth and merriment. “You guys are insane.”

“Well, that’s not gonna happen, Arch.” Jughead was still laughing, but there was a serious undertone to his words. “Now that all our cards are on the table, I think it’s about time we—you and I—ante up. That one little interlude wasn’t quite enough.”

Archie had a little moment of hesitation, all the childhood chants of “no homo” coming back to haunt him. But then, he caught Jughead’s eyes, and the pull was undeniable. “I agree, Jug. I’m not really sure how it all works with guys, but I bet we can figure it out.” He looked down at the countertop, all guile gone from his tone and expression. “You’re worth figuring it out.”

Jughead was taken aback at Archie’s candor. The girls glanced at each other, true smiles on their faces. “Thanks, man,” Jug said as he got to his feet. He walked over to the redhead and took that strong jaw in his hands, tilting Archie’s head up to his own. “For the record, so are you.” He leaned down to touch those lips, and the heat and lust of the previous night was rekindled immediately all around.


	9. Unequivocal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which they all share more fun sexy times and then begin to ponder where they've found themselves...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, please, please, PLEASE leave comments! I love them!

“All of you guys are,” Betty said. She stood up from her stool, and gathered hands, leading the three toward the staircase until they all got the idea and followed her up, each shedding clothes along the way. They tumbled into the room in a heated frenzy, all hands and arms and lips and knees and necks and teeth. It was hard to tell where one of them ended and the other began. It didn’t matter who was your boyfriend or girlfriend, they were all in this together now, all begging for one another’s touch, aching for one another’s taste.

Veronica snaked her palm between the bodies to find Betty’s warm core, tracing just barely around the edges of Betty’s clit with her fingernail. It was exquisite torture, teasing and taunting Betty’s need, stoking the fires that lay kindled there. The blonde threw her head back, landing on Archie’s abs. She turned her head to the side to find him ready and wanting, but with Veronica’s motions, she knew she couldn’t focus on doing a proper job. “Juggie?” She asked sweetly, with a breathless, desperate undertone, “Can you do me a … do me a favor?”

“Anything,” he broke off an extended kiss with Vernoica to answer her.

“Can you please suck Archie off?” Everyone froze for a moment, not sure if she was messing with them. It was so blunt, but filled with such need. She continued to writhe against Veronica’s fingertips, staving off her looming climax to enjoy the burn of holding back. “I wanna see it. Please.”

Jughead leaned over to Archie’s ear, his hot breath tracing lazy trails around the edges as he whispered, “You okay with that?”

Archie, suddenly overwhelmed with an incredible desire he’d never dared admit, even to himself, could not trust his own voice to speak. Instead he turned his head, kissed his friend fiercely, locked eyes with him, and nodded his consent. There was a movement of limbs as Jughead repositioned himself, settling between Archie’s open thighs. The redhead’s cock was as upright and proud as the man himself, straining against the air of the room for the chance to be surrounded. Jughead didn’t take his usual route of analyzing and overanalyzing, instead lowering his mouth onto Archie immediately, knowing that instinct would take over, and he would figure it out as he went.

He thought of what he liked best when Betty offered him this particular attention and tried to mimic it. He wrapped his finger and thumb around the base, and moved his mouth down to meet the fingers, taking in every inch. The sensation was new and different, but also intoxicating. As he backed off, he opened his mouth and let just the tip of his tongue trail up the underside of Archie’s cock, teasing at the very sensitive spot where the head met the shaft. At the same time, he moved that finger and thumb up and down Archie’s length with a gentle pressure and brought his other hand up underneath Archie’s sac to grasp his balls with a brief, but tight squeeze. Archie moaned and bucked against him, clearly enjoying every minute of this.

At the sight of Archie’s sheer pleasure, Betty couldn’t hold it in any longer. She came loud and hard, her head digging into Archie’s abs and Veronica’s smile turning darker and more lustful. “Oh, no you don’t!” the brunette whispered, “I’m not done with you yet.” She pulled her hand away from Betty’s dripping core and moved down the blonde’s body until her mouth was right where her hand had just been. She licked one long, slow, decadent stroke right up the center, relishing in the tastes pooled there. When she reached the top, Veronica nibbled ever so slightly at Betty’s clit, then took it into her mouth and sucked hard. This was not something Betty had experienced before, and it took her by surprise, but she adored the shockwave it sent through her system.

She looked over to watch Jughead’s now steady rhythm and Archie’s writhing and bucking. She could tell the redhead was close to his climax, which only brought her closer to another one of her own. At very nearly the same moment, the two released—loudly—and Veronica noted the desperate breathy tones they each made blending perfectly into a kind of music she hadn’t known was missing from her life.

Echoing her own line of thinking, Jughead sat up, swallowed, wiped his mouth, and offered, “You two actually sound amazing when you come together. That was so hot! Like you were made to sound like that at the same time, the different notes in a chord…”

“I agree, Juggie,” Vernoica said, “but I think it’s our turn now, right?”

“Oh, yeah. Yeah, definitely,” Jughead grinned, and as he got up to trade places with Archie, his very erect cock stood out brilliantly. Archie smiled and moved out of the way so his best friend could lie down. As Jug got settled on the old mattress, Archie was already on him, wrapping his big hand around Jughead’s lengthy dick. Meanwhile, Veronica, not to be outdone, made some magical motion, which ended up flip-flopping her and Betty, though no one was really quite sure how exactly she had maneuvered that. Betty straddled her bestie and leaned down for a kiss, her blonde hair falling in a curtain around their faces. Veronica eagerly returned the gesture, and Betty was momentarily fascinated by the taste of herself on Roni’s lips and tongue. As the girls continued their lip lock, Betty began to grind against Veronica’s core and eventually reached her hand between them to tease at Roni’s clit with her thumb.

Soon, Roni’s gasps left them unable to continue kissing, and Betty just continued that driving rhythm, the one she’d so recently learned by watching Roni herself perform the move. Veronica continued to moan and thrust back up into Betty’s grind, losing control by centimeters and letting the calm and collected veneer ebb away.

Archie slid his entire hand up and down Jughead’s length several times, almost as he would do to pleasure himself. He knew he wanted to go for it, to return the favor of what Jug had done for him, but he also didn’t want to mess it up or hurt anyone’s feelings. He looked down to see the faintest glistening at the very tip of Jughead’s opening, and the sight jarred him out of his overthinking routine. Without hesitation, he leaned down, darted out his tongue, and captured the silvery liquid before taking Jughead’s entire cock into his mouth to the point he almost gagged himself. It was incredible how natural it felt to him despite polite society’s consistent messages otherwise.

More incredible, though, was Jughead’s reaction. It was a heady mixture of honest disbelief and pure joy. Archie had never seen such a look of ecstasy and abandon, and it egged him on even more. He began to move, also wrapping a couple of fingers around Jughead’s girth. He moved his hand in rhythm with his mouth, up and down within a scant centimeter or two of his lips, giving a slight little twist every time he came back down to the base. Jughead lost himself in the sensations, eyes darting between the red hair flashing in and out of his field of vision and the raptured stare Betty had fixed on Veronica. It was almost too much, this tumult of intoxicating sights and sensations, and he allowed himself to get lost in it, to give himself over to it entirely.

When he came, the hot torrent shot to the back of Archie’s throat, and the redhead swallowed it quickly while continuing to try to coax more out. Jughead finally had to grab Archie’s hair and pull him up to his mouth just to give his throbbing dick a break. Archie went with the motion and collapsed on top of Jughead, sort of half-on, half-off of his new lover’s body, and the two began to kiss deeply and quietly, communicating a thousand words with no vocalization.

Veronica gasped and moaned and shivered and quaked as Betty continued the grinding motion she’d come to love immediately. She came hard, and Betty tumbled right after her, the two of them collapsing in a breathless heap next to the boys. They, too, began a quiet session of tender kisses, speaking love and trust and joy in those soundless moments.

“Let’s never leave,” Betty whispered. “Let’s stay here, together, in this bed, like this for eternity.”

“Would that we could, B,” Veronica smiled, “but we have to go back.” At the blonde girl’s pout, Roni continued, “It’ll be better that way, anyway. We’ll know it’s not just this mountain air when we all still want to screw each other’s brains out at home!” She laughed, a mischievous sparkle in her eye.

“Okay, fine, but can we reserve the right to come back up here as often as possible?” Betty asked.

“Absolutely!” V responded. The boys chuckled and Jughead turned over, sliding out from under Archie's comfortable weight. He couldn’t resist what lay before him so invitingly, and after a moment of inner debate, he decided to go with a spanking instead of a nibble.

Roni didn’t see it coming, so she jumped and screeched when Juggie slapped her ass. This set off another round of boisterous laughter among the four lovers that culminated in silly conversations and happy recollections for the next several hours, interspersed with making out and exploring one another’s bodies.

After a while, Jughead stood up and stretched. “I think I want a shower,” he said very matter-of-factly. “You coming, Betty?”

“Oh!” she looked up and smiled at him, “sure.” She kissed Veronica, then leaned over her and kissed Archie, then got up and went to Juggie. “I’m good with that.”

“Good,” Jughead smiled and pulled her to him. He kissed her, then took her hand and led her from the room.

“That was a little abrupt,” Veronica said as she turned over and scooted up next to Archie, fitting her body along the length of his and resting her head on his shoulder.

He wrapped his arm around her and absentmindedly began to trail his fingertips up and down her back in an arc. “I think he just wants to check in with Betty. Just wants to talk.” He looked down at his love and continued, “We’ve crossed a lot of lines today, Roni. We gotta keep checking in with each other. I know you were on board from the beginning, but how are you with all of this?”

“I’m good, Archie, truly.” She smiled sincerely up at him, “I think this has been coming for a while, really. Doesn’t it just feel like, I don’t know, right, to you?”

“Yeah, I think it’s good. I think it will be good.” He lost himself to his thoughts for a few minutes, then he finally spoke again. “Veronica,” he was unsure how to ask the question on his mind.

Sensing his hesitation, Veronica urged him on gently, “Go ahead, Archie, just say it. Be blunt.”

“Well, I mean, we have done a lot today, yeah? But what if… what if I want, you know, more?”

She smiled at him, immediately knowing where this was going, and ready to have a little bit of fun. “Like, what? Like you want to be inside of Betty? Or Jughead? You want to fuck them?” She almost growled this last bit, and he seemed a bit taken aback.

“Um, well, sort of?” he stammered.

She laughed and playfully slapped his chest. “I’m sorry, baby. I was just playing with you. But you seem serious, so what’s your concern? Really?”

“I guess I have two, really,” Archie said. “First of all, actual sex… like real… penetration… is a far cry from what all we’ve done so far, so I need to know that you are absolutely, really and truly, 100% okay with that—especially where Betty’s concerned.”

“Okay, and…” she wanted to wait to answer everything until she knew all of his reservations.

He was hesitant to state his case, so she began to stroke his hair in silence, waiting patiently for him to find his words. “What if… well, what if we take it to that point, if we actually have sex, and like, I don’t you know, like it?”

Veronica was confused, “How could you not like sex with Betty? She’s gorgeous and it looks like she knows all the right ways to move…”

“No, no, not Betty!” Archie closed his eyes and sighed, “with Jughead.”

The fog lifted and Veronica suddenly understood. “Ooooh! I see. Well, do you want to?”

“I mean, I think so, yeah.”

“You think so?” Veronica urged.

“I mean, I guess I never really thought about it seriously before this weekend,” Archie answered her earnestly. “I mean, Jug’s always been there, you know? Like I’ve never had any doubts that he always will be. And so I guess, on some level, I knew I loved him, but… I don’t know, Roni, I just never thought of him—or any guys, really—in that way. It just never occurred to me. But when we kissed… it was… I don’t know, electric. It made me feel things I never thought I would, and it was… well, it was a lot to process. But now… now that we’re where we are, I can’t honestly imagine going back, you know?”

“I know,” she replied. “I get it. But let’s think about it, okay? I’m gonna be totally brutal, alright?”

“Yeah, okay.”

“Before today, had you ever even thought about giving another man a blow job?” Veronica asked.

“No, not once.”

“Not even in your dreams? When you weren’t in control?”

“No,” Archie answered, “my fantasies were always about girls. I never thought about it. I mean, it didn’t like, disgust me or anything, but it just wasn’t on my radar.”

“Okay. But when it was time for you to put Jughead’s cock in your mouth, you didn’t even think about stopping, did you? Not even for a moment?”

“Hmmm…” he thought about it for a second, “no, I guess not.”

“Then I wouldn’t worry about it. You love him, Archiekins. It’s the real deal. There’s so much there, and there are so many reasons to love him so much, you just never realized that this was a possible aspect of that love, that’s all.” Veronica seemed to have all the answers. “In another lifetime, this might never have happened, but it wouldn’t change that you love him. And he loves you, too. It’s so obvious. So why not enjoy it?” Archie inhaled to object with his reservations, but she stopped him, “If you don’t like actual sex with him, then I’m sure Betty and I can pick up the slack and you can just go on with the blow jobs. I don’t think anyone would be upset. Besides, you’ll never know until you try.” She giggled and kissed him again, trying to take his doubts and fears with her as she pulled away.

“Yeah, I guess so,” he replied. “Of course, that’s if he wants to try that with me, too.”

“Just another thing for us to talk about, I guess,” Roni smiled.

“Guess so,” Archie settled. He felt a peace and calmness, as though everything had been resolved. He knew there was more confusion and struggle to come, but he also knew somehow, unequivocally, that they would all get through it… together.


	10. Back to Reality

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the foursome *attempts* to return to school... and normal life... but who really wants that?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for those of you sticking with me. I'm sorry it takes so long to update each time. Let's see where this goes....

As she reached a hand in to test the water temperature—it took a few minutes to get warm up here in the mountains—Betty looked over her shoulder to where Jughead sat, lost in thought, on the closed toilet.  “What’s up, Jug?  What’s going on in that head of yours?”  She sauntered over to him, and he wrapped his arms around her tiny waist, placing his chin on her upper belly and gazing up at her gorgeous face through the swell of her perfect breasts.

“I’m just thinking about… logistics, I guess.”  The contrast of his warm breath against her cooled flesh brought out goosebumps, but she seemed to love the sensation.  “Like, how does it all work?”

“I thought we covered that already,” Betty said, and leaned down to kiss his forehead.

“No, not about who’s with who when or any of that—we’ll work that out.  I mean…” he was struggling for the language to verbalize his concern, and Betty knew that was not usual for the wordsmith.  “I don’t know how to…”

A sudden understanding washed over the green-eyed beauty.  “Oh!  You don’t know how to actually do it with a guy!”

Jughead had enough faith in her to allow himself to be bashful.  He knew she wouldn’t tease or judge, and she would recognize that his concerns were of actual physics and coordination; he had already said he was all-in emotionally, and she wouldn’t question that declaration.  “Yeah.  I mean, I understand the basics, but—” now he was a little unsure of how to word things again, “well, neither of us are exactly, um, small, so how does that all, you know, fit together?”

Betty couldn’t help it.  She laughed.  She wasn’t trying to be mean, but it was just like Jughead to cut through all of the emotional stuff to get right to the technical.  He always needed to know how things worked.  “Okay, look, when you and I got together, you were a virgin, right?”

He crinkled his brow, not sure where she was going with this.  “Aside from my own hand, and some wet dreams, no, I had no action.”

“But when you were ready, when I was ready, we figured it out, yeah?”  He nodded, and she kissed him briefly.  “So, you’ll figure it out with Archie, too.”

Jughead’s eyes took on a slightly devious sparkle.  “Yeah, I guess I did figure you out,” he smirked, sliding his hands up her silky skin.  He began to tease at her nipples with his thumbs, “I think I know just how to make you scream.” 

She wanted to abandon herself to his touch, but she was fairly well spent at the moment, and had also had a sudden idea.  She pushed gently away from him, and he took her cue magnificently, as always.  He stood to his full height, slipping his hands back down to her hips, and let himself get lost in her mossy stare.  “You know,” she began, “you could just ask Kevin how it works.”

“Kevin?!?”  Jug was incredulous that she had suggested it.  He knew that the two of them were fairly close, but he also knew Kevin could be a flirt and a gossip.

Betty laughed.  “I got it!” she couldn’t stop giggling now as she stepped into the shower.

“Got what?” he stepped in behind her.

“Your goat!  It’s mine!” she snickered.

“Whatever, you know you have my everything,” he said dismissively.  “Now turn around and let me wash that hair for you.”  She obliged, and Jughead proceeded to wash, rinse, condition, and re-rinse her hair for her before grabbing the loofah and tending to her body.  When he was done, they traded places, and she returned the favor, loving the scent of his body wash filling the room.  It was erotic and charged, but neither of them pushed beyond that.  They didn’t speak any more, but the silence was comfortable and easy, each of them ruminating on the past day and all of its revelations.  Jughead’s inner dialog ran smooth and poetic, as if he were narrating his own life inside his head, while Betty was making lists and formulating questions she wanted to research.

*****

The rest of the weekend was made in heaven, with the foursome sharing everything.  With no one around for miles, eventually, they stopped bothering to put their clothes back on unless they were going into town for supplies.  They talked about anything and everything they could think of, and they made some decisions.  They would hold off on telling anyone explicitly for now, except for Archie’s dad; he seemed the kind who would support them as long as everyone was happy and agreed.  Otherwise, they wouldn’t try to hide, necessarily, but they wouldn’t volunteer any new details to the gossip-hungry crowd at Riverdale High School.  That said, they decided that they wouldn’t be ashamed to answer if someone was bold enough to ask, as long as it was decent and respectful (i.e.: not her royal bitchiness, Cheryl Blossom).

This was the new normal, the new standard.  They found they all loved to be very physically affectionate with one another—a touch here, a tickle there, a hug or a hold for no reason other than that it felt good.  They seemed to all fit together in a massive knot of peace and happiness; the knot behind Betty’s eyes and the strain in Archie’s shoulders had both relaxed by the time to pack up and head home.  They were all smiles by the time Andre arrived with the big black Lodge SUV to take them back to civilization.  They piled into the back together and chatted amicably for the entire ride.

As Andre stopped at each house to drop someone off, kisses and hugs were shared all around.  The driver tried not to notice, but he couldn’t ignore the joy seeping from the group.  _Must have had some kind of crazy teenage orgy_ , he thought, and he left it at that.  He was not a man of many words, and he’d been paid for his discretion for years now.  Working for the Lodges came with a fair amount of shocking scenes.

*****

The next morning saw Betty jumping out of bed, ready to return to school and studies.  She chose a soft pink sweater with a peter pan collar, some green and white plaid pants, and her usual simple make-up and high ponytail.  Veronica spent a good 30 minutes choosing the perfect outfit—a short, black (of course) A-line skirt, tight dark purple sweater, some matching Manolo Blahnik pumps, and her signature pearls.  Jug picked up whatever was next on top of his pile of clothes, shrugged into his jacket, donned his beanie, and was ready to take on the world.  By the time all of these decisions were made, Archie had hit the snooze button for the third time and was beginning to stir just ahead of the fourth alarm. 

He sat bolt upright in the bed and realized he had less than 30 minutes to get showered, get dressed, and get to school.  He would probably be late—again.  He swung his legs over the side of the bed, groaning as his morning wood made light contact with his boxers.  He stripped them off as he went into the shower, discarding them wherever they landed.  He looked down at his length and began to lightly stroke himself as the water washed over him.  _Yep_ , he thought, _I’m definitely going to be late today_.  Instead of his usual raven-haired muse, the visions fueling his fire today included his two best friends as well.  When he came, it was from remembering the feel of Jughead’s mouth on his cock, and he knew he was in for a long and likely torturous day.

Just as Archie rounded the corner at the top of the stairs, Fred was stepping up next to the bottom to scream his name.  Ever the doting father, Fred had a brown paper sack with a muffin and a to-go cup of coffee waiting for his son.  “You’re gonna be late, Arch.”

“I know, Dad.  Sorry,” Archie grabbed the offerings in a rush and was almost out the door before turning to face his father.  “Hey, when we get home tonight, I want to talk to you about something.”

“Everything okay?” concern spiked the older man’s voice.

“Yeah, Dad.  Actually, everything is really great,” Archie’s voice took on a dreamy quality, and he couldn’t stop the smile from spreading ear to ear.  “Really good, actually.”

“Nobody’s pregnant, right?  I’m not ready to be a grandpa quite yet.”

Archie snickered, “No, of course not.  But I’m late!  We’ll talk when we get home!”

“Yeah, yeah, go, go,” Fred shooed his boy away and out the door.

*****

Later, between third and fourth periods, as Archie walked past the south stairwell, a hand reached out from around the door and pulled him into behind the door.  “Where are you going in such a hurry, Andrews?”

“English,” Archie grinned at the smirk on Jughead’s face.

“Well, we missed you this morning is all,” Jug teased, “you’re gonna have to get up earlier than that if you want to keep all three of us … satisfied.”

“Oh, yeah?  What about me?” Archie took a step closer to his friend, pressing him into the corner without making actual contact.

“What do you mean?”

“When do I get to be satisfied?”  Another half step, and Jughead’s breath hitched in his throat.  “Or do I have to keep taking care of myself?”  Archie let those words sink in as he leaned down and kissed Jughead’s neck ever so gently.  “Like I did this morning?”  He kissed the other side, near Jughead’s earlobe.  “When the thought of your mouth on me made me come?”  He whispered this last bit into Jughead’s ear, his hot breath raising goosebumps on the writer’s skin.

Jughead could go one of two ways here.  He could make out with Archie right here, in the hallway, probably getting lots of stares and both of them a detention for being tardy, or he could let this ache build for the rest of the afternoon and do something about it later.  He chose plan B.

“Uncle!” he cried and ducked out from under where Archie had braced his arms against the wall next to his head.  “You’re not playing fair.”  The look in his eyes told Archie that he was not actually upset, but instead, aroused and wanting.  “I don’t want another detention.  That just delays the time I can spend with you guys later.”

Following that logic, Archie relented, allowing Jug to escape his clutches.  “Fine, but I’m holding you to that.”

“You better hold me to something!” Jughead called suggestively as he walked away toward his AP Economics Course.  He was still shivering slightly from the feel of Archie’s breath skating over his skin.  And what he’d said!  _Could it be true?  He was thinking of me?_   Jughead was so lost in his thoughts that he nearly ran over Kevin as they both got to the door.  “Oh, sorry, Kev,” Jughead muttered.

Kevin gave Juggie the up-and-down.  “What’s got you so hot and bothered?” 

“That obvious?” Jughead asked, taking a half step backward and gesturing for Kevin to enter the room first.

“Yeah, a little bit,” Kevin said, then stepped whispered as he stepped past, “You’re sporting a semi, dude.”  Jughead shifted nervously and rearranged his satchel to give him some cover as he made his way to a seat at the back of the classroom.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Jughead, ever the man of mystery, let a teasing tone enter his voice.  This piqued Kevin’s interest, so he followed to the back and took the empty desk next to Jughead’s.

“What is that supposed to mean?”  Kevin’s eyes sparkled with delighted interest.

“Look, if I really told you where my head is,” Jughead replied earnestly, “you’d … well, you’d probably lose your shit.”

“Hey, now, wait a minute!”  Kevin’s tone changed to serious, verging on angry.  “If you’re not all steamed up over Betty, we might actually have a real problem here.  She’s one of my best friends in the world, Jughead, and I won’t stand for…”

“No, no!  It’s nothing like that!”  Jughead was actually quite pleased at seeing this protective streak in Kevin.  He knew it was just another line of protection for his favorite gal.  “Betty didn’t cause this, not today, but she knows all about it… the situation, I mean.  What’s going on.  She’s all in.”

“Well, now you have to spill.”

“Oh, I do, do I?”  At that moment, Mr. Keane decided to start his lecture, so the boys’ conversation was cut short.  It wasn’t long before Jughead’s phone vibrated in his pocket.  In his usual fashion, Mr. Keane had his back to the class while he wrote notes and figures on the board.  Chancing the trouble, Jughead retrieved the device from his pocket.  One new message notification.

[Kevin]:  _Spill._

Jughead replied with a quick _nope_ , and Kevin had the acting chops to look genuinely hurt when he saw the message.  But he wasn’t done, yet.  Kevin was nothing if not persistent.

[Kev]:  _Y not?_

[Jughead]:  _Maybe because you’re the biggest gossip in this school?_

[Kev]:  _What?!?!  Me???  I’m innocent.  Just tell me!_

[Jug]:  _I don’t think that’s a good idea._

[Kev]:  _Come on!_

[Jug]:  _It’s not all mine to tell. There are other people._

[Kev]: _???  People?  What kink is this?_

[Jug]:  _LOL… Although… you actually might be able to help…_

[Kev]:  _Help you sport a semi in the middle of the day?  Why, Jughead Jones, I thought you’d never ask!_

[Jug]:  _I’m full of surprises.  Now stop texting me before Keane gets keen._

[Kev]:  _LOL_

Jughead tried to focus on the lesson.  He really, really did.  But the words and numbers were the furthest thing from his mind.  His head kept drifting back to arms and legs and hands and mouths and tastes and smells and textures.  He had to work to control his breathing.  He kept glancing at Kevin, who kept glancing at him, and both boys were trying not to burst into peals of laughter at the silly surreptitiousness of it all. 

Jug raised his hand, and when he was finally acknowledged, he asked Mr. Keane if he could stay put for a few minutes into lunch.  As the de facto editors of _The Blue and Gold_ , he and Betty had free reign of the school during all four lunches, allowing him time to speak with any student without disrupting classes.  Keane agreed, and Jughead fired off a quick group text letting his friends know where to find him.  When the bell rang, he grabbed Kevin’s arm and asked him to stay.


	11. The Reveal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Kevin finds out the truth, and the foursome discusses the situation with Fred.

“So, you’re gonna tell me?”

“Maybe.  Give me a minute, but just hang out, okay?”

Within a few minutes, Betty had arrived.  Taking in the scene in front of her, Jughead sitting in a desk with his satchel in his lap and Kevin sitting on a nearby desk, looking expectantly back and forth between them, she had a feeling she knew what was up.  “Juggie, I wasn’t serious.  You didn’t have to go run off and ask Kevin.”  She turned to Kevin, who was just opening his mouth to protest, “No offense, Kev.  I’m just really surprised he told you.”

“Well, he hasn’t told me anything yet.  He’s just being a giant tease… as usual.”  Kevin grinned, clearly amused.

“Oh,” Betty said, leaning over to give Jug a kiss on the cheek.  “What’s up, then, Juggie?  How were you teasing Kevin?”  Her eyes shimmered as she picked up on the slight, but comfortable tension in the room.

Jughead opened his mouth to answer her, but Kevin beat him to it.  “Well, he came into class all hot and bothered, all steamed up, and then he implied it wasn’t due to you!”  Kevin held up his hands, “I know, I know, but he said you knew everything about it and were ‘all in,’ whatever that means.”  Betty giggled, which only stoked the fires of Kevin’s curiosity.

“What happened, Jug?  Remembering the weekend?” she teased.

“Yes, definitely,” Jughead started to lose himself in the flashes of images again.

“Which part?”

“All of them,” he replied, closing his eyes and letting the scenes wash over him freely this time. “All of the hands and lips… everyone’s…” he trailed off.

“All of?” Kevin whispered, and then suddenly clamped his palm over his mouth.  “Did you… did you guys… did you have an orgy?”

“No!” both of them answered together, before Betty added quietly, “Not exactly.”

Kevin’s gears were still turning, though.  “Wait!  You went to the Lodge lodge this weekend, didn’t you?  You two, and… and Veronica and… Archie!”  He was putting it together, or trying to, anyway, trying to make sense of the tumble of ideas racing through his brain.  “Holy shit!  You guys all… Oh, my God!”

“Wait a minute, now.  What exactly do you think you know?” Jughead’s smirk was filled with playful mystery.

Betty moved Jughead’s satchel from his lap and sat down in its place, wrapping her arms round his neck, “Now, Jughead.  Let’s cut the poor guy some slack.  Just tell him.”

“Tell him what?” Vernoica’s voice came from the doorway as she entered.

“About the weekend away,” Betty replied nonchalantly.  “Hey, don’t you have cheer right now?”

“Of course, but I just told Ms. Jensen that I needed to help you guys with something on _The Blue and Gold_ , and she let me come.”

Another voice came in through the door, “I’m just skipping.  Who needs Algebra II?”  Archie grinned, and seeing the assembly of friends, decided it would be prudent to shut the door behind himself.  He did so then joined the group of friends in the back corner of the room.  “What’s going on?” he asked as he leaned over to give Roni a kiss and settle on the next desk over.

Jughead took the lead role in what would prove to be an… interesting conversation.

“Well, Arch, Kevin let me know earlier, at the beginning of 4th that I was having a bit of a… reaction to recent events.”

“He was walking in here at half-mast, and it was painfully obvious that his mind was _not_ on economics,” Kevin defended.

Archie began to blush, the crimson in his skin clashing with his red locks.  “Sorry, Jug.  I just couldn’t resist.”  Everyone stared at him, and Jughead chuckled.

“It’s okay.  I could just still feel your lips on my neck and your breath on my ear… it definitely had an effect on me.”  Jughead’s eyes closed as he talked, and he shifted beneath Betty.

“You’re the one who pulled me back there,” Archie said.  “So, really, if you think about it, it’s all your fault.”

Kevin was finally catching up to the teasing that had melted his brain.  “Wait!  You two?  You…  did you fuck?”  His eyes were wide as saucers.

The boys looked at each other, not sure how to answer.  They had shared so much, but they had not yet had true, penetrative sex with one another.  “Well, not exactly,” Jughead answered.

"Close, though,” Archie grinned, not taking his eyes off Jughead, “not that I wouldn’t… we just didn’t get there yet, I guess.”

Jughead’s smile stretched wide, “Yeah, not yet, I guess.”

 _Well, that settles that_ , Archie thought, _He does want to_.

Seeing the boys stammering, Veronica decided to take over.  “Kevin, we’ve been friends for a long time.  We trust you, so we’re telling you this.  And while it’s not really a big secret, we’re also new to this, and we don’t want to spend days defending or explaining it.  But we know you’ll understand.  And we feel like you’ll support us.”  She didn’t allow time for him to answer, to object, or even to confirm.  “We—the four of us—have taken a new direction in our friendship.  We have all loved one another for some time now, and we have decided that it’s not just as best friends.  We are each attracted to all three of the others, we each _want_ all three of the others, and so we each _have_ all three of the others.”  She took a breath and summed it all up, “We’re poly.”

“Oh!” Kevin cried.  “Well, why didn’t you just say so?”  He smiled, stood up, and began hugged each of his four friends earnestly.  “I should have guessed.  You guys have all always been so close, and I mean, God, you’re all so hot…  It makes sense.  And can I just say, I’d love to be a fly on that wall!  I bet that’s some of the hottest sex on the planet… the way you guys move together just walking down the hallway…  Betty’s little dark streak, Archie’s rock hard, well, everything,” Kevin gave him a once over, then seemed to suddenly realize that might be a bit creepy.  “V, I bet you have some crazy good moves, and Jug, well, you just ooze sex appeal.  Yeah, that’s awesome you guys!  I’m so happy for you!”

By the time Kevin was done with his little speech, all of them were laughing.  Then Betty remembered something, “Wait!  Archie, what happened with you and Jug in between classes?”  Jughead told them about the encounter in his most poetic language, and the conversation carried on throughout all the lunch periods.  The chatter was light and friendly, and they felt free to be as affectionate as they liked around Kevin.  It turns out he had some friends online who were poly, so he was well aware of what that meant.  He was just happy that they were happy.

Right before the final bell, Archie told them that he was planning to tell Fred after school.  He wondered if they wanted to be there, or if they thought he should do it alone.  Everyone agreed that he would take it very well, but they all thought they’d like to be there for that.  They knew the conversation would not go so well when it came to Alice or FP, and no one ever wanted to tell Hiram and Hermione.

They all agreed to meet at Archie’s house at 5:30.  That should give everyone time to get done with any practices or activities and give Fred time to get home from work.  The rest of the school day passed fairly uneventfully, but every time one of them passed Kevin in the halls, he was ready with a high five, or at least, a big dopey smile.  He just loved love, and love with sex was even better.  Of course, now he couldn’t get the image of Jug and Archie together out of his head….

*****

One by one, the gang arrived at Archie’s house after school and their various activities were complete.  Archie got each of them something to drink, not only knowing instinctively what everyone would want, but having already had it on hand.  He brewed some strong coffee for his dad and Jughead, had a strawberry cream soda for Betty, and had some sparkling La Croix water with a hint of lime for Roni.  He hugged each of them and took some deep breaths, steeling himself for the potentially awkward conversation that was about to happen.  “Guys, my dad is almost here,” Archie said when his text notification sounded.

As if on cue, the others moved in for a group hug, each offering Archie their strength and courage.  _We can do anything, as long as we do it together_ , he thought.  They all settled on the plaid couch, the late afternoon sunlight pouring in the old Craftsman stained glass above them.

When Fred came in, he was surprised to see all four of them there.  “Hey, guys,” Fred had an easy smile for his son and his friends.  “Arch, I thought you said you needed to talk.  Everything okay?”

“Yeah, Dad,” Archie replied, rubbing at the back of his neck nervously, “but is it okay if my friends stay?  It’s kind of dealing with them, too.”

“Of course, bud!  Whatever you need, but now you really do have me a little worried.  You sure everything’s alright?”  Fred took a seat opposite them in the armchair.

Archie nodded, “Yes, absolutely.”  He took a deep breath and considered a few different ways to start.  Veronica, Betty, and Jughead sat patiently, waiting to take their cues from him.  Finally, he seemed to decide and plunged ahead.  “Dad, I think you know—you’ve known for a while, really, that I’m in love with Veronica.”

Roni smiled and took his hand.  Fred nodded, but remained quiet.  His mind began to race with thoughts of impending weddings and other crazy scenarios, none of them quite hitting on what he was about to learn.  He could see that Archie was struggling, so he allowed his boy the latitude to find his footing.

“Well, we’ve always been really honest with each other,” Archie continued, “even if it hurt sometimes.”  Veronica nodded her assent, mentally propping him up and prodding him to continue.  “And it turns out that our love is really real, and mutual, and strong.”  Now everyone was nodding, all of them acknowledging this as fact without a sound.  “But, well,” Archie reached for Betty’s hand on his other side, “I’m in love with Betty, too.”  Betty laid her head on his shoulder and gave his hand a squeeze, covering it with her other.

Fred still remained quiet, his mind trying to catch up, but withholding questions for the time being.  It appeared that there would be more.

“Now, you know Betty has been dating Jug for a while, yeah?  And they are totally in love, without a doubt.”  Betty and Jughead locked eyes across the group, each having taken one end of the couch.  Juggie reached a hand behind Betty and let it rest on Archie’s back, girding him even more.  “But, Dad, I…  I…”  This was the part Archie was the most unsure of.  Fred was not a homophobe by any means, but it might be different with your own kid.  “I love Jughead, too.  And not like a brother.  I mean, I uh, I _really_ love him.”

With that, Archie stopped.  He stopped talking, stopped moving, maybe even stopped breathing.  The four of them sat on that small couch, locked together, drinks forgotten, waiting for Fred’s verdict.  The older man, no matter what he was thinking, was not showing any visible reaction yet.  He was processing.  He didn’t quite understand how Archie could be actively _in love_ with three different people, nevermind how great all of them were.  _That’s just not how it’s done._   _Then again, my marriage wasn’t so perfect.  Who am I to judge?_

Betty very quietly asked, “Mr. Andrews?”  Fred turned his attention to the blonde.  “We all love Archie back, too,” she offered. 

Taking a deep breath of his own, Fred asked them, “So, what does this mean?  Are you all… dating… each other?”

Veronica decided that she would explain; it seemed that it was becoming her role in the group.  “We all love each other, Mr. Andrews.  Very much.  I would gladly give my life for any one of these guys.  I know they’d do the same for me.  We have had lots of hard conversations about this, and we have all come to the agreement that we have the capacity to love more than one person, truly and deeply, at a time.  We all want to be together as much as possible, and we all want to share that love openly.  We’re what’s called ‘polyamorous.’  Now, we won’t be having any ‘Welcome to Poly-ville’ housewarming parties or engraved invitations anytime soon, but we want to be honest with you.  We wouldn’t want you to happen to walk in on, say, Jughead kissing me or something, and think there’s anything weird or sneaky or jealous going on there.  We all agree.  We are all in on this together.  And we thought, of all the parents, you would be the one who would understand it the best, and who might actually support it.  As long as we’re honest.”

“Well,” Fred began, “I do have a lot of questions, but I think most of them can wait.  Mostly, Archie,” he zeroed in on his son, “are you sure about this?”  Archie nodded and gave a little encouraging grin.  “And you’re happy?”

“Yes, absolutely.”  Archie was incredibly sincere.  “Maybe more than I’ve ever been.”

"And no one’s getting hurt?  No one’s cheating or sneaking or lying?” Fred clarified.  All of them shook their heads no.  “Come here, son.”  Fred stood up and took a step toward the table.  Archie followed suit, making his way around it and coming to a stop in front of his father.  “I love you, son,” Fred said, pulling Archie into a tight embrace.  “All I ever want is for you to be happy and live your best life.  I’ve seen how each one of these three makes you a better person in some way or other, and if this is what you choose, well, I’ve got your back.”

Archie hugged his dad fiercely, fighting back the sudden tears welling in his eyes.  “I love you too, Dad.  Thank you.”  Fred opened his eyes over Archie’s shoulder, and opened his arms to the paramours on the couch.  Each of them came up and stood in a big group hug.  Betty didn’t fight the tears that fell, knowing deep inside that her own experience telling Alice would not be supportive or loving at all.  Veronica was beaming, and Jughead was oddly overwhelmed.

[ _Author’s Note:  Rest in Peace, Luke Perry.  You are missed._ ]

Slowly, reluctantly, they all eventually released the embrace and returned to their seats.  Fred asked them who all knew and how they planned on telling others, especially other parents.  He seemed to agree that Hermione and Hiram wouldn’t do well with the news, and that Alice would be judgy.  He wasn’t sure what FP would have to say, but thought it best to tell him, too, eventually.  They shared their desire to be not exactly hidden, but not exactly public about it, and talked about Kevin being an ally and advocate for them—a true role reversal.

Fred was curious about the dynamics, but very respectful of their boundaries.  He asked questions, but didn’t pry, and he made them truly comfortable with talking about it.  It helped them to define some things and to become more steady in their positions, as well.  They all laughed together, remembering the times that there may have been hints that this is the way they were headed.  They talked about what polyamory meant, what it didn’t mean, and public perception.  It was cathartic and necessary.

After a couple of hours, Fred headed up to bed, and the lovers decided to watch a movie.  Archie made popcorn—an Andrews specialty that was “not that microwave crap.”  Jughead went out to the garage to get the queen-sized air mattress the Andrews family kept on hand for camping or unexpected guests.  Betty and Veronica each called home to say they’d be spending the night at the other’s house, then went to the kitchen to make a tray of brownies.  The ease with which they had moved in sync with one another in the cabin came back immediately, as if they had been doing this for ages. 

The three on snack duty heard a scraping and some metallic groans in the living room, and realized Jug had moved the couch off to the side, then pulled out the sleeper part of the sofa.  He placed the air mattress next to the pulled out one and began to blow it up with the attached pump.  Betty went to the hallway linen closet to retrieve some pillows, sheets, and blankets; she had practically grown up in this house, too, so she knew where things were.  She and Juggie made up the beds while Veronica finished up the brownies.  Archie went up to his room and came down with two of his roomier t-shirts for the girls and a pair of pajama pants for Jughead, then helped Veronica bring in a tray of popcorn and more drinks from the kitchen.

They plopped down, all on the air mattress for now, and started _Annabelle: Creation_.  They changed into the comfy clothes, and the girls definitely looked cuter in Archie’s shirts than he did.  They all cuddled and chatted and ate popcorn and brownies and screamed at the terrifying bits of the film.  After it ended, they simply talked and goofed off for a while.  Within a little while, the girls had added several small braids to Jughead’s hair and painted Archie’s fingernails and toenails.  Juggie had doodled an elaborate design on Betty’s hip in ballpoint pen.

“Wow, Jug, I never knew you were such an artist,” Veronica cooed at him.

Betty looked down at the art, “Really, Jug.  Maybe I should go get this tattooed on me permanently.”

Archie took a gander at the image there, and couldn’t stifle his laugh.  It was a group of stick figures clearly meant to represent the four of them in a daisy chain, each person’s mouth on the next person’s crotch.  Archie’s hair was colored in with red ink, Betty had a high ponytail, Veronica wore her pearls, and Jughead had a crown beanie on.  Veronica seemed to be the only one who had come out of the evening unscathed.  The other three seemed to realize this at the same time, and by mutual unspoken agreement, they pounced on her and began tickling her mercilessly.  Her gleeful laugh soon turned to playful screams, and they all collapsed in a pile, tired and happy and wrapped in their love for one another.

As they were about to doze off, Betty realized that they still had school in the morning.  She reached over and set the alarm on her phone for an hour earlier, figuring that would give her enough time to run home and grab a change of clothes, as well as some for Roni.  Jug could borrow something from Archie.  She laid back down with her loves and let herself drift away to dreamland as Archie’s light snores began to fill the air.  It was, perhaps, the most at peace she had been in years.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, I am completely open to your feedback, so please, PLEASE, comment and let me know how I'm doing so far...


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